NORFOLK — Simply flushing Saturday’s 63-27 loss at rival James Madison might not be extreme enough for Old Dominion.
After one of the most baffling losses in program history, the Monarchs might be well advised to chase it with an auger and a bottle of Drano.
ODU (4-3, 1-2 Sun Belt) managed a record-low 10 yards of total offense in a second half that saw the first-place Dukes (6-1, 4-0) score 35 straight points.
As Appalachian State visits the Monarchs this weekend, ODU’s players hope to leave the uncharacteristically putrid afternoon in Harrisonburg.
“We just can’t let it be just sitting in there,” sophomore cornerback Zion Frink said Monday. “We’ve got to overcome it. Don’t want to overreact to a loss. Obviously, it was a bad one, but we just can’t overreact to it.”
Old Dominion quarterback Colton Joseph is sacked by James Madison defensive lineman Aiden Gobaira (97) during the fourth quarter of JMU’s 63-27 victory Saturday in Harrisonburg. MIKE BUSCHER/AP
The setback was the second straight for the Monarchs, who have had a uniquely promising season derailed in a matter of weeks.
Before a 48-24 loss at Marshall on Oct. 11, ODU received votes in the American Football Coaches Association poll for the first time. According to ESPN’s College Football Power Index, the Monarchs had about a 20% chance of reaching the College Football Playoff.
That number as of Monday, to borrow from the dean in “Animal House,” stood at 0.0.
No metric, however, means all is lost for ODU. The Sun Belt East Division title, with significant help, remains within reach. Bowl eligibility is two wins away with five regular-season games remaining.
Sixth-year Monarchs coach Ricky Rahne, who tends to stay on his week-to-week message regardless of how a season is going, is well aware of what remains up for grabs.
But the big picture has never been what has driven him.
“Yes, everybody wants to win championships and do those sort of things, which is obviously still in play because we have no idea what’s going to happen the rest of this season,” Rahne said. “But each and every game is motivating for me. There’s a new challenge each week. There’s a new opportunity each week. To me, that’s the thing that’s motivating.”
After trailing 28-27 at halftime at JMU, ODU seemed to take the rest of the day off.
The Monarchs ran nine offensive plays in the third quarter, resulting in a single total yard. By the start of the fourth quarter, ODU had let the game get away.
“Not moving the ball, only having about 10 yards in the second half — that’s not us,” said senior offensive lineman Stephon Dubose-Bourne, a former star for Indian River High in Chesapeake. “So it was pretty embarrassing. But we won’t let that happen again.”
When the Monarchs, who started out 4-1, were winning, Rahne noticed that fans often approached to congratulate him on the season’s progress.
They still come up to him, though they’ve begun to lean more toward sending a card.
“I think the thing that’s changed the most is everybody asks me how I’m doing,” Rahne said. “I think it’s part of being in the public eye. It’s also part of my profession. Every single one of us has wins and losses, right? We all have wins and losses throughout our lives and those sort of things. The difference is when I have mine, they’re more public.”
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com.
https://www.pilotonline.com/2025/10/20/odu-looks-to-move-on-after-embarrassing-loss-at-jmu/
